Ghost in the Shell: Late Night Talks
by AkaneRules
Summary: (My first story) Centered around the first movie, this Ghost in the Shell fanfic is a simplistic and slightly romantic take on Batou and Kusanagi's conversations they have on their boat. Kusanagi is, of course, questioning her own being and existence. Batou's response is one of a kind.


Late Night Talks

The hiss of opened beer bottles sounded before being brought up to thirsty lips. Batou gave a heavy sigh of satisfaction after swallowing his first gulp as Kusanagi remained silent. They were sitting across from each other on a boat out upon the bay which was not an uncommon occurrence for them to do. She looked out at the waters with longing, bluish-grey eyes and was deep in thought. Despite the lack of stars in the night sky, the city lights seemed to make a good substitute for them. Batou looked at her quietly and always tried to decipher what was on the Major's mind. Solving such a puzzle would make anyone a genius.

"How'd the water feel today?" He tried to think of something that they could talk about. He always found her scuba-diving hobby such an odd thing for a full-prosthetic cyborg to do.

"It felt alright." She simply replied before taking another sip.

"You know, you're a little more quiet than usual…" He pointed out, "Something bothering you?"

"You could say that..." Her words trailed off a bit.

Batou's brows raised, "Something bothering the Major? That's news to me."

She ignored the statement and rotated her wrist that held her beer can, letting the alcohol swish inside.

"Well? What's on your mind?" He was almost cautious to ask; He assumed that she would give him a defensive comment or ignore the question.

"I saw Them earlier." She said, looking ahead at the seemingly endless sea.

"'Them'? Who's 'Them'?" He asked with a confused and almost concerned look on his face.

"Everywhere I go, I see clones of myself. I see me. I see them."

"I don't understand what you're talking about…" He set his almost empty can aside.

"Haven't you seen them too? I see myself sitting in a restaurant, waiting for my husband to return from the wash room. I see myself walking the streets by myself. I see myself posing before large windows in fashionable clothing. I see all of this while remaining on a boat in the middle of the city."

"Major, I think you need to head back…" He suggested. He assumed that there was some sort of malfunction in her system after her dive into the water so he began to stand.

She had an almost frustrated look on her face and almost muttered, "I just…don't feel…unique."

Batou stopped and looked directly at her. He was utterly shocked by her revelation. This did not sound like the Major he knew. She sat there looking so gloomy. So…innocent. He walked over next to her and sat next to her.

"I know who they are…" She began, "They're other prosthetic bodies using the same design as mine; All from Megatech. I can't help but feel so ordinary, so conforming. Sometimes I look at them and try to imagine what my life would be like in their shoes. Out of all the bodies manufactured and sent off, I, out of the hundreds, was assigned this role. Not as a wife, not as a bystander, not even as a mannequin, but as…"

"You." Batou answered, "Looking down at her."

She looked back up at him with slightly furrowed brows.

"Mo-…Major…You see all of those other women and compare yourself to them. Sure they may have the same face, eyes, and hair as you but…they're not you…" He noticed that he was probably sounding a bit sappy and he scratched the back of his neck, "I've seen Them too…but you know what I think?"

She looked at him silently, yet her eyes were curious to hear his conclusion.

"I think that you were meant to be here. Fate, divine intervention, whatever floats the boat; I know that you being a part of Section 9 is the reason why you're here. You're unique. You know how to deal with me and 5 other grown men…well actually, exclude Togusa in that…"

Kusanagi gave a chuckle and looked down, to hide her rare occurring grin. Batou always found that simple expression so beautiful but of course he could never admit that or she would probably avoid any visible emotion around him at all costs.

"I don't know where we'd all be without you, though we'd probably all be a little saner," He joked with her as always. He then said seriously with a little more impact, "There's only one Major Motoko Kusanagi."

"Thank you, Batou…" She spoke in a much softer tone and sounded less cold, "I'm glad you understand. I think I would actually miss you if we were to part one day."

Batou chuckled and took the comment as a joke. When she stood and walked over to the door, his chuckle quieted. There was something foreboding about her words that he seemed to sense. It was unsettling and he stood up and wanted to ask her what she meant yet she had retreated inside within seconds. He thought about her words for a long time. He himself could not imagine being apart from her after so many years of working together; they were almost inseparable. Batou didn't bother to finish his drink and he noticed that Kusanagi had left hers in the spot she sat in.

"Ready to head back?" She asked in her natural authoritative tone.

"Yeah." He replied a bit quietly. He made a mental note for himself to keep a closer eye on her from now on. He felt uneasy as the words 'if we were to part one day' replayed over and over again in his head. It almost sounded like some sort of death wish to him.

He walked over to the captain's chair and took a seat. He looked over at his Major and she was looking out at the dark sea again. He never understood her fascination with a giant puddle of murky water.

"…_is vast and infinite…_" Kusanagi spoke without much thought.

He presumed she was talking about the sea since he did not hear the first part of her statement. He turned the key and started the boat's engine.


End file.
